“I want to fight Lebedev next and my promoter, Michael King (King Sports Enterprises), will bring that fight to Los Angeles,” Kalenga said. “Once I beat Lebedev, I will take on the other world champions – (IBF) Yoan Pablo Hernandez, (WBO) Marco Huck or (WBC) Grigory Drodz. Give me any and all of them!”

The 26-year-old Kalenga, the Congolese fighter who lives in France, captured the Interim WBA title this past June in Monte Carlo, taking a 12-round split decision (116-112, 115-113, 113-115) over Mateusz Masternak (32-1).

Last Saturday evening, in front of 6,000 partisan fans in the first world heavyweight championship bout held in Mississauga, Canada, hometown favorite Daley was dropped by Kalenga in the ninth, displaying heavy-handed combinations that bludgeoned him helplessly to the mat. Daley trailed badly on the scorecards going into the final round and the former college basketball player decided to go for broke. Kalenga finished him off, though, with two more knockdowns in the 12th round. Referee Charlie Fitch halted the action at the 1:52 mark after a three-punch explosion left Daley out on his feet before going unconscious and motionless on the canvas for several moments.

An aggressive fighter and vicious puncher, Kalenga embodies his nickname – “El Toro” – relentlessly coming forward, throwing powerful bombs from all different angles. His style promises to make him a hit with fans all over the world.

Fighting in Daley’s backyard wasn’t a problem for Kalenga, whose last seven fights have been in seven different countries – Canada, Monaco, Ireland, Spain, France, Latvia and Germany.

“I love to fight and for me it doesn’t matter where,” Kalenga noted. “If I fight in my opponent’s territory, he thinks that he has the advantage but, once every one clears out of that ring before the first bell, it is just me and him. Of course, the officials will sway towards the home fighter, so, that’s why I go for a knock out.”

“Youri is tough, rugged, brutal fighter and, at 26, he will be a big force at 200 pounds,” Hyde commented. “Youri has raw power in both hands and he’s also a showman. He’s going to be a huge star once U.S. fans get to see him in action. He didn’t want to leave the final outcome to the judges, hence, scoring a devastating knockout in round 12. Daley was game and he did put up a good fight.”

Kalenga is now the mandatory challenger for Lebedev, whose last fight was a second-round stoppage of Pawel Kolodziej (33-0) this past September. The Russian southpaw had lost his WBA title belt May 17, 2013 to WBA “Champion in Recess” Guillermo Jones (KO11), but Lebedev was reinstated as WBA champion after Jones failed a post-fight drug test.

Lebedev, however, has never fought outside of Russia and Europe, so for Team Kalenga to make a fight in the United States with Lebedev is a long-shot unless it goes to purse bid and King Sports Enterprises wins.

“Youri’s promoter, King Sports, has huge resources and it is very keen on delivering world title fights,” Hyde added. “I am confident that Michael King, CEO of King Sports, will put this fight with Lebedev on in California.”

Meanwhile, outside of Europe, Kalenga is the best-kept secret in the cruiserweight division, if not in all of boxing.

In the ring, like a charging bull on Red Bull, Kalenga just keeps coming forward with bad intentions. He made a major statement in his North American debut last weekend. Now, his goal is to settle the score in the WBA with Lebedev, before attempting to unify the world cruiserweight title.

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FIGHT CLIPS FROM FIGHTKINGS TV

November 2014 Boxing Report By Michael Amakor

Shannon Briggs started off November securing an impressive 50th career win over a rank journeyman and then flew to Germany and attempted to crash Wladimir Klitschko events as he was preparing for his title defense against Pulev. His many attempts at goading Wladimir into a fight while sometimes entertaining, have bordered on criminal and downright creepy, but videos of his antics have generated thousands of views on YouTube and there is a real possibility that of a mega fight between the two might take place in 2015.
Briggs who was on hand to witness Wladimir’s destruction of Pulev in the 5th round has apparently forgotten the brutal beating he received at the hands of Vitali Klitschko, Wladimir’s older brother, and the coma he was in after that fight because he remains undeterred in his quest to fight Wladimir. He will receive a more severe beating and a fist full of dollars if he keeps up with his pursuit of Wladimir, we just hope he will consider it worth all the pain after the beating.
Felix Sturm and Robert Stieglitz fought to a draw in a twelve round war that most stateside fans missed because it was in Germany. That fight was an eliminator for the right to fight Arthur Abraham the current WBO champion, so it is very possible there will be rematch.
Heavyweight Tomasz Adamek suffered a 10th round decision loss to Szpilka in Poland in a mild upset. Adamek has hinted at retirement, but until he is inducted into the hall of fame, do not hold your breath. Mansour returned to the win column with a KO over Fred Kassi, but he will need many more " READ MORE